me. this is a big, big issue for law enforcement. >> had no idea. learn something new every day. thank you so much. have a wonderful weekend to you and all of you as well. thanks for sticking with us. we will see you monday, remember, one hour earlier. let's go to washington. joe johns in for wolf blitzer. "the situation room" starts right now. new information about the death of one of the world's most infamous terrorists killed by an air strike in yemen. this hour, details on the operation and the next big terror target. president obama calls awlaki's death a major blow to al-qaeda, but critics say his administration crossed a dangerous line by killinging a u.s. citizen without charges or a trial. and some high profile terror suspects are believed to have links to al-awlaki. we'll look at his deadly legacy

as recruiter, schemer and problem began da man. you're in "the situation room." -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com he is the most important al-qaeda leader to be taken out since osama bin laden. the breaking news this hour, we're learning more about the air strike in yemen that killed anwar al-awlaki. first, a reminder of why this american born cleric was so dangerous. president obama says he took the lead in planning to murder americans. he's been linked to those terror suspects of the decade including the so-called underwear bomber, the accused ft. hood attacker, three of the 9/11 hijackers and the man who allegedly tried to blow up a car in times square in new york. we have in depth coverage of the mission to kill al-awlaki and

the implications. first, to our pentagon correspondent, barbara starr. >> several administration officials say it was a cia hit. the cia and pentagon had been working with the yemenese for nearly two years to kill anwar al-awlaki. >> we had always had tremendous concern that after getting bin laden, that someone like al-awlaki was a primary target because of his continuing efforts to plan attacks against the united states. >> several u.s. officials tell cnn it was a joint effort between the pentagon and cia working with the yemenese. a cia drone fired a missed at a convoy driving 80 miles east of

the capital. awlaki was in one of the cars. sources say the u.s. military also provided crucial targeting information. essentially trekking al-awlaki at all times through a variety of sensors, officials will not say if u.s. troops were on the ground. also killed, american samir khan, an aide from north carolina who published the jihadist magazine, inspire. two others were killed as well, officials say. >> anwar al-awlaki's great power was his ability to speak to his vulnerable audiences in the west. people who weren't on the radar of authorities or security officials. that's changed now. but all of his material, is sermon, the audiotapes, those are still online. >> but al-qaeda in yemen is still a threat.

>> while he was important, he wasn't the leader or even the number two leader, so this al-qaeda arabian peninsula, its leadership and key lawmaker are still out there, so it's not like the threat from this group has ended. >> the men who recovered the bodies say they were burned beyond recognition, but it was very early today that administration officials were publicly saying they were certain that they knew al-awlaki had been killed, so joe, this raises a fascinating question. who was on the ground or who or what t what was flying overhead with what sensors that made the u.s. so certain it had its man? >> absolutely. and sort of asked another way. we know what the united states did. we know they provided the missile. we know they provided the drone. the question is whether the yemeni government simply opened the door and how much more they did than that. >> absolutely. we don't know the answer to it

yet. one clue is a yemeni government official said today that this was a joint u.s. intelligence sharing operation between the u.s. and yemen, but let's be clear. the u.s. basically conducted the operation. they want to make sure the yemenis get credit for it due to the difficulties that government is having. so the u.s. doesn't want a heavy footprint in public on this one. >> that may have something to do with why the administration had sort of a muted response to this compared to what happened with osama bin laden. thanks so much r for that reporting, barbara starr. president obama says al-awlaki's death shows there's no safe haven for terrorists, but critics are raising questions about his decision to target and kill an american citizen. let's bring in jessica yellin. >> hi, joe. we are told by national security

officials that it is typical in an instance like this that the president after an administration wide review would give the order to capture or kill al-awlaki, but as you have made clear just now, the white house itself is staying mum on this subject. it's president obama's latest successful strike on a wanted al-qaeda terrorist. >> death of al-awlaki is a major blow to al-qaeda's most active operational affiliate. al-awlaki was the leader of extennell operations for al-qaeda in the arabian peninsula. >> but this time, it's different. al-awlaki was an american. this may be the first killing of an american target with no trial or indictment. >> the u.s. has done something i don't think it's done before. it has killed a citizen without any due process. this is about rule of law to

keep us all safe. >> warren's organization sued to take al-awlaki off a hit list and lost. >> goes to the assumptions about is circumstances of his death and i'm not going to address that. >> an adviser to the u.s. state department explained the government's logic for killing anyone on the terrorist capture or kill list regardless of nationality. >> a state that is engaged in arm conflict or in legitimate self-defense is not required to provide targets before the state may use lethal force. >> there's no question this administration viewed al-awlaki a threat for some time. >> i consider al-qaeda in the arabian peninsula with al-awlaki as leader, the most significant risk to the u.s. homeland. >> peter king says quote it was entirely legal and from a top

democrat. >> it's legal, legitimate and we're taking out someone who has attempted to attack us on numerous occasions. >> i just spoke to a u.s. government official who said in this instance, the legal justification to kill is self-defense. under both international law and under u.s. law. according to this official, here is essentially a man, al-awlaki, who had been linked to all plots. therefore is seen as a true threat to the united states. the first obligation is to attempt to capture the person. but under law, it is, but under international law and under this war of terror law, if you cannot capture, you are therefore allowed to kill. these are unusual times and that is the justification, joe. >> thanks so much for that. the one thing they did not say in that statement clearly is

talking about the issue of eminence and whether you can go after a person if they're an imminent threat or not. let's bring in fran townsend, the former homeland security adviser to president bush. she serves on the external advisory boards. there is just so much to talk about here. there is that issue of imminent threat, but perhaps the most important thing is a lot of people talking about no due process here. an american citizen being essentially executed by order, presumably of the president of the united states himself. there's no due process, but you tell me there is a process. >> that's right. and what i would say to you while there's no due process in the sense of an article 3 court, there is inside the government. before any of this would have been authorized by the president, there's an entire

both legal and policy process this goes through. the lawyers are involved. they look at all of the intelligence. they've got to satisfy themselves about the credibility, about the imminence of the threat, the legality of it and then by the time it goes all the way through an inner agency process including the lawyers, that's when it goes to the president. if it's approved, a capture or kill, it goes then to the director of the cio or whatever has authority to take action. >> do you think it's easy or hard to make the case that he was an imminent threat? >> i think it's easy. it's nadal hasan. links all the way back to two 9/11 hijackers. you saw the computer cartridge case where he tried to blow up cargo planes. so, this is a guy and the christmas underwear bomber. this is a guy who has consistent and persistently taken action directed against the united states. zbh from your sources, what went into this operation? >> you have the yemeni security services. they're distracted with their

own sort of internal strife and chaos. but there's been, i am told by both sides, that the counterterrorism cooperation the last three months is the best it has ever been and there has been a real change of information. that also included i suspect, regional partners. >> now, is there any video? do you have pictures of what happened? you know, we talked so much about this in the case of osama bin laden. which by the way, authorities were much more forthcoming with information than they have been this time. >> i'll say this. if there are videos or pictures, we will never see them. if it was in fact as has been reported, a drone strike, typically, there is a, it's a grainy black and white sort of video, but there will be very precise video that help them assure themselves just before the button got pushed that they were locked on to the right target and got the order probably from the cia director. >> i have to push you just a little bit on this issue of an

american being killed. it's created tremendous buzz. first of all, to your knowledge, is this unprecedented? has it happened before? >> i think it is unprecedenunpr. i've tried to think about any other circumstance. i've worked in the bush administration. this was a decision by the informatiobama mrks. john brennan said no one should be able to use the flag to wrap themselves in a shield that prevents us from taking action to prevent all americans and ik that's right. >> thank you so much for coming in. it's great to have you as a resource here at cnn when working our way through a story like this. >> stand by for a loser look at the other look at the other american citizen killed today. and who moves up on the list of america's top terror targets? we'll talk about the next big threat.

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anwar al-awlaki's roots played a critical role shaping him into one of al-qaeda's most powerful rising stars. a man some said could one day become osama bin laden's heir apparent. deborah fayerick traced al-awlaki's rise and filed this report in august of last year. >> be careful. do not trust enemies. >> when anwar al-awlaki speaks, he speaks largely to a western audience, inspiring young men to join his insurgency how dangerous is he considered on a scale on one to ten? >> i would say ten. >> counterterror expert gohail calls al-awlaki, osama bin laden's heir apparent. >> often, united states is seen as strategic hub for getting the

message out. it's a country that has enormous resources and potential for recruitment is large and significant. >> if anyone knows, it is al-awlaki. born in america, he spent his teen years in yemen, before returning to the u.s. to study engineering at colorado state university. he soon realized a talent for preaching. at a mosque near campus, where mumtaz remembers him as a young man. >> he gave two sermons. it was long time ago, but they were very good. >> good enough that without formal training, he found himself preaching at the denver islamic society. he began recording cds on islam and the prophets. >> they are thirsty for knowledge and he comes across in a very simple way to explain to you what islam is all about.

>> from denver, al-awlaki moved to san diego in 1996 with his new wife. he was finding his voice when he became a spiritual adviser to this mosque on the edge of san diego. >> very friendly, outstanding. >> his neighbor said they enjoyed talking about things like the orient and taj mahal. >> he liked to go alba core fishing so every once in a while, he would bring me some fillets that his wife cooked up. >> he was also pursuing a masters at san diego state university. >> he spent a lot of time learning how people think in a society. >> it was in san diego, that al-awlaki met an associate of this blind cleric, in prison for plotting to destroy u.s.

landmarks. >> it's too much of a coincidence that the successor to al-qaeda idea logically was connected to two of the individuals that planned the worst terrorist attacks that we have ever seen. >> there's no evidence he knew of the 9/11 plot, but al-awlaki's neighbor remembers his ominous good-bye. august 2001, he comes and says, we're leaving. what was the conversation? >> he said i'm going back to virginia and shortly after that, to yemen. i said, well, i do hope you'll be coming back to san diego soon. and he said, no, he said, i won't be coming back. he said in a little while, you'll understand why. >> traveling across-country, al-awlaki become prominent in a church in virginia. one of the hijackers followed him there. he said about pursuing a phd in

at washington university. an imam who arrived after he left said the cleric preys on its followers. >> most of the people who have been so-called radicalized, they know little about their religion. they have been mobilized by their passions. by their feelings. by their urges. by their insecurities. >> al-awlaki appears to know nothing about flying planes or building bombs. the counterterrorism experts say his message is his most powerful weapon. >> let's dig deeper now on who anwar al-awlaki really was. joining us is paul, an alum any

fellow at the center on law and secure and an investigative reporter specializing in al-qaeda. so, simple question is now that he's dead, just how much a force was he really in the first place or simply a huge symbol here in the united states of an american who became an enemy of this country. >> well, joe, this was a big blow against al-qaeda's yemeni affiliates. he's emerged as the driving force to launch attacks against the united states. his fingerprints were all over the targets, the underwear and the package bomb plot last october. he's also been an inspiring figure for the -- there's been a string of cases where individuals implicated in these

terrorism cases were deeply influenced by al-awlaki's message. >> let's dig deeper. why was he so inspirational? >> the key thing here is he that had big mainstream audience before he joined al-qaeda's fold. there was something in the way he spoke. sort of calm, eloquence, which was appealing. he also knew how to push all the right buttons. he was someone who was very influential and inspiring in these pro al-qaeda radical circles in the west. >> you've just described what we in the political world and the united states describe charisma. let's talk also about samir khan. this is the other gentleman who was actually killed with him in this united states attack. he, too, is an american and affiliated with the al-qaeda

magazine known as inspire. >> that's right. an american, born in saudi arabia. he came to the united states when he was around 6 years old. he came to new york city. he was radicalized here in new york city. he then moved to north carolina, started a pro jihadist blog and in october of 2009, moved to yemen, joined forces with al-awlaki and from there, started putting out this magazine called inspire, which was put out every few months trying to urge followers in the west to launch attacks in the west and providing a how-to guide in terms of launching these attacks. counterterrorism officials on both sides of the atlantic were really disturbed by this magazine and the practical advice given. this is also a deeply significant blow. >> who is is next big threat to the united states now that he's been eliminated? >> well, i think that al-qaeda and the arabian peninsula is

still a significant threat to the united states. the bomb maker is still at large and a lot of the senior leadership is still at large. al-awlaki wasn't the top leader. it's been able to take advantage of political turmoil in yemen to expand operations over there, so a lot of concern about al qaeda and the arabian peninsula, but i think there's fwraet concern that one of his followers may launch a revenge attack. both sides will be really watching out for this in the weeks ahead. in central pakistan is still a threat against the west. still a threat coming from lots of different places, joe. >> thank you so much for that. >> thank you. so, how can anyone be sure al-awlaki is really dead and who if anyone has seen the evidence to document it? i'll ask the chairman of the

house homeland security committee. plus, ron paul slamming the attack that took al-awlaki down. why he says it's setting a sad precedent. without warning?es lans or when you're distracted? when you're falling asleep at the wheel? do you know how you'll react? lexus can now precisely test the most unpredictable variable in a car -- the driver. when you pursue perfection, you don't just engineer the world's most advanced driving simulator. you engineer amazing. ♪

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president obama says the death of anwar al-awlaki is a significant milestone in the war against al-qaeda. administration officials are not hesitating to say the terrorist recruiter is dead, but as we reported, tribesmen who witnessed the air strike in yemen say the victims were

burned beyond recognition. joining us now, the chairman of the house homeland security committee, republican peter king of new york and mr. chairman, off the top, how do we know this man is dead if the bodies were burned beyond recognition, it doesn't sound like there are any photographs. how do you know? >> joe, speaking to top officials and the intelligence community, obviously, in their mind, al-awlaki was tracked, follows. they are convinced he was in the vehicles that were hit and they are so cautious. the last thing they would want to do is to come out and say that he's dead and come out that he's not. obviously, i wasn't there. i didn't see the bodies, but the people i spoke to, i trust, i trust them any way, but in addition to that, they would not say there's even a possibility that al-awlaki could ever show up alive.

>> what was he doing while he was killed? >> my understanding he was if a convoy and that was attacked. but that's as far as i'm going to go on that other than to say my understanding is also that in this operation, that the yemenis were extremely cooperative and helpful. that this was a joint operation. we can allocate the responsibility or the credit, maybe one way or the other, but the fact is, yemenis were very much involved. >> have you personally seen any pictures from this scene in yemen? is there any video or pictures that you're personally aware of? >> i have not seen any, but i have no doubt he's dead, knowing how cautious they are and would not have come forward unless they were certain he was the man. >> now, do you have any problem with the notion of the president of the united states ordering the assassination of an american citizen in another country? >> joe, the only problem i would have is if the president had not

issued that order. to me, the fact that a man who has american blood on his hand, a man who has sworn to kill americans, a man who is clearly in many ways, he becomes a leading al-qaeda terrorist in the world. he was the won our intelligence officials were most concerned about. the fact he's an american citizen makes his conduct more reprehensible. i fully support the president. i can be as partisan a republican as anyone, but on this issue, president obama did exactly the right thing and i would give him a medal for doing it. >> a lot of people will say even in world war ii when germans were captured here in the united states, they were given a trial, but in this case, an american citizen was not. >> joe, if we had the opportunity to capture him and bring him in for a trial, that's another thing. there was no opportunity. the only opportunity we had was the way we did. to allow him to get away under some thought that perhaps in the

future we could capture him, how many american lives could have been lost in the meantime. i give him credit for issuing this order. >> one last question because this issue has created so much buss on the internet and elsewhere. even presidential candidate, ron paul, has weighed in. we have a graphic of what he said cht to start assassinating american citizens without charges, we should think very seriously about this. what's your response to that? >> we did think very seriously about it. the president gave it a lot of thought. this is a process that had to work its way through with lawyers, advisers. the president gave a tremendous amount of thought and did what he believed he thought he had to do and i support him issuing that order. to me, it would have been irresponsible not to. to allow this man, the leading recruiter that al-qaeda had to

allow him to continue to recruit, kill americans because we wanted to make ourselves feel good, that is absolutely wrong. i like ron paul, he's a friend of mine, but he has also said in the past that the u.s. brought on 9/11 and now, he's saying we have to give this serious thought. i agree, we did. we should be thankful the president did what he did. >> as chairman of the homeland security committee, you are privy to information. did you get any more information about plans to kill americans? >> we saw al-awlaki's fingerprints on other plots. in october, my committee was planning on holding a hearing on al-awlaki tracing him back through 9/11 and through the present and how he has been involved through various plots, so there's no doubt in my mind that al-awlaki was planning war operations. that he was using scientists to

find ways to use more deadly devices. and so, i would just say that this is a great moment for america and the president of the united states has every reason to be proud of himself and i'm especially proud of the men and women of our intelligence forces and special operations forces. >> congressman peter king, thank you so much for coming in. >> thank you. a mosque in washington suburbs knows al-awlaki better than most worshippers there spoke to us about the man they knew as an american imam before he became an al qaeda cleric and florida republicans are going all in for their primary. a bold move could force big changes in the election calendar.

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lisa sylvester is monitoring some of the other top stories right now. florida is pushing its primary

to january 31st. several other states are changing their dates. here we go. >> got the list right here. iowa, new hampshire, south carolina and nevada are vowing to move their primary dates to stay ahead of florida. they don't have to decide until tomorrow. florida ledge islators ignored rules to move the presidential primary. republican national committee hasn't said what if any stiffer penalty will be handed to florida. and the very same bacteria responsible for killing 15 people who ate tainted cantaloupe now prompting a lettuce recall in 19 states in canada. the fda are recalling chopped or shredded romaine turned up listeria. prosecutors say amanda knox is lucky there isn't a death penalty in italy saying quote,

she killed for nothing. her lawyers maintain italian police made serious mistakes in collecting evidence. knox is expected to speak monday. and hp's new ceo just signed on for a grand total of $1 a year. that's her salary. her pred success sor was shown the door. whitman is eligible for bonuses and has the option to buy 1.9 million shares, but prices have to go up. also, steve jobs is in the dollar a salary. >> all about the options at the end of the day. if you have confidence in yourself, bring up the stock, you make money. >> people like that because you have to perform. you have to be effective. >> the stockholders like it, too. beginning monday, "the situation room" moves up an hour. be sure to join us from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. on weekdays.

john king usa at 6:00 and erin burnett airs at 7:00 p.m. eastern. before al-awlaki was plotting terror attacks from yemen, he was in the washington suburbs. we spoke with muslims who once worshipped with the man known as the osama bin laden of the internet. and armed to the teeth and possibly prowling the american coast. the nascar nationwide s,

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ten years ago, americans were in the grip of terror from a series of anthrax letters mailed to news organizations and capitol hill. the plot killed five people led to a hunt for a rogue scientist. the government named stephen hatfield as a person of interest only to clear him later. this week, i'm taking a closer look at the documentary, "death by mail." five years after the attack, anthrax investigators are nowhere near an arrest. >> i wouldn't say stuck. it just meant there would be a

lot of long days trying to get through all the potential subjects. >> some of the investigators who really, i believe, helped turn the tide in the investigation, they were working on their own time. >> working on old leads. including the man nancy haigwood had flagged years earlier. bruce ivans. >> that was years between 2001 and 2004, 2005. he was not an apparent suspect cht and then the vice started to squeeze. >> we'd look at his e-mails. he starts to become very interesting to us. >> the e-mails to former colleagues, where ivans reveals psychological problems. june 2000, he's taking solexa, but what is scary is the paranoia. july 2000. my symptoms may not be those of

depression or bipolar disorder. they may be paranoid personality disorder. >> he's working with some of the most deadly pathogens that we have. >> august 2000. 13 months before the anthrax letters. i wish i could control the thoughts in my mind. it's hard enough sometimes controlling by behavior. >> which then makes you calling the question, if he's thinking that, was he capable of carrying out the anthrax attack? >> bruce ivans denied being the anthrax killer. in sunday's "death by mail," we'll follow the trail of evidence and explain why the fbi's top subject was never charged. that's sunday night, 8:00 eastern. a second major al-qaeda leader killed by the united states and only a matter of months. will it help president obama's

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cnn is giving the gop presidential contenders the last chance to make a pitch to voters before the state's new january 31st primary day. we're now partnering with the republican party to host the presidential debate that month in jacksonville, florida. so, be in tune for that. what, if anything, does the killing of anwar al-awlaki mean for the president's re-election? joining us now, cnn political contributor, roland martin, also, former bush speech writer, david fromme. you look at this and it seems like we've been there before. osama bin laden was eliminated. there was some thought he was going to get president obama a big bump because he did something no one else was able to do. now, we've got anwar al-awlaki. is the president going to get a bump this time? >> how this helps the president, it removes the national security conversation out of next year's presidential campaign.

at the end of the day, the election going to be about the economy. you can talk iraq, afghanistan, you can talk about killing as many terrorists as you want to, it will boil down to folks'folk pocketbooks. >> churchill, won world war ii, saved civilization and lost the next election. people don't use tbat lot to sa thank group vote business the future what the economy's going to look like in the next four years. >> a failure could hurt you as president jimmy carter, what took place with the hostage rescue in iran. so again, this kind of issue with the economy driving everything, it's going to overlap anything. >> so, this president, can't go on the campaign trail and push this thing to get votes? >> no, he can. again, though, how he has neutralized if you will, this conversation on the gop, is that it's not going to be an issue.

we heard national security, foreign poll circumstance huge part 2008 presidential campaign it's not that big of an issue in 2012, if he had failures it would be a big talking point for the gop? he has a lot of failure as the home. that's what people use their ballots to discuss, what is the state of the economy. look in 2004, that was a close presidenting election. >> yep. >> bush very nearly lost because people were uneasy about the economy, because things weren't growing rapidly as enough. in this case dealing with an economy that may not be growing at all, may be shrinking. >> to your point. >> ohio, carries the president. >> new cnn/orc poll sort of underscores what you're talking about here. a graphic of it. this was asked, what, september 23, 25th? economic conditions today, how are they? 10% of respondents said good. 90% said poor. this sounds like a hill that's going to be very hard for the president to climb, though i guess you both know, there was

an uptick yesterday, suggesting things might be improving a bit for the president. >> the president relies a lot on the number that says more people blame bush than him. i think when his supporters mention that they misunderstand what the polls are saying. voters may give the president a pass on whose fault it is. we knew whose fault it was and elected you to fix it but it's not fixed. if you bring the car to the shop and it's making a noise and they don't fix the monoise yaw blame them for not fixing the noise. >> the president will say they have done a lot to reform wall street. in many ways they have not. they have operated from the margins. when you do not see anyone paying the price, when you haven't seen anyone from wall street going to jail, when you haven't seen the perp walk, that hurts hip as well. they also had a difficult time

trying to convey the actions they took stem an even deeper recession. >> it could have been worse, it's never much of a re-election argument. >> once again, talking about this whole issue of who gets blamed, and the vice president even, you know, weighed in on this over the past couple of days. we have a poll here asking, who is more responsible for current economic problems? bush and the republicans or obama and the democrats? 52% said bush and the republicans. >> but the problem with that is bush is not on the ballot in 2012. >> that is -- that shows a backward looking view. they have to look forward. what are you going to do to fix the problem? and the president, the president laid down his big jobs speech if people are convinced of his approach, that that may help him. but the fact is results are grim. and at three years, and four years if the results remain as grimace they are now, just the general principle you fire the

guy. even if he's just unlucky, get us a luckier president. >> what point do the voters start looking at this president and saying, hey, this is now on your watch? >> election day. look, i mean, you can sit here and talk about every poll, but until you know who the gop nominee is, until you're able to contrast what that person is saying with the president, then you don't know. again, 2004, bush, a generic democrat in 2003, at this point be be bush. who won re-election? >> thanks so much for this. we'll be talking about this for several months. >> you know it. learning more details now on how the u.s. can be sure anwar al awlaki met his doom and he was killed despite hiding in one of the world's most lawless regens. tom foreman at the data wall with a look how he was tracked down. [ malannouncer ] we're not employers or employees. not white collar or blue collar or no collars.

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i tell you what i can spend. i do my best to make it work. i'm back on the road safely. and i saved you money on brakes. that's personal pricing. armed iranian ships, a dozen miles off the coast, that's the potential situation the u.s. is facing right now. cnn's brian todd has the story. >> reporter: joe, up to now, iran's challenges to the u.s. have been mostly confined to the

persian gulf region. but now the islamic regime wants to take that gamesmanship right to america's doorstep. from one of americas most powerful enemies, a direct threat to the east coast, iran's top navy commander says his country will move naval ships into the atlantic, quote, with a powerful presence close to the american marine borders. the iranian admiral says his nation would only be reciprocating american military patrols in the persian gulf, miles from iran's shores. he didn't say when, how many what kind of vessels iran would send. the sabre rattling gets a quick brush-off from u.s. officials. >> we don't take these statements seriously, and given that they do not reflect at all iran's naval capabilities. >> reporter: it may be a matter of distance and resources. any iranian battle group would have to travel 9500 miles to get close to america's east coast. experts say, that would be difficult. iran's navy doesn't have many friendly ports where refuel and do maintenance, and

communications are a challenge. but this noise laughingstock navy. it's patrolled in the mediterranean sea and the indian ocean. it's got three kilo class submarines and ships capable of launching missiles with the names nor and nas. >> 12 miles from the u.s. coast in international waters but say a ship is between 12 and maybe 50 miles out. could one of those nor missile or nasser missiles hit the u.s. mainland? >> well, this is a picture of an iranian frigate launching that nor missile, it's not fitted to the larger ships that would make the travel over here. if it were fitted, then, yes, it can gauge not a land target but another ship up to 75 miles. >> reporter: the missiles wouldn't be quite as accurate if they tried to hit land targets. analysts believe it was a missile supplied by iraner fired by the terrorist group hezbollah, which damaged an israeli ship in 2006, killing some israeli sailors.

i asked an expert why iran want to project power they may not have so far away from their borders. >> the reasons are all based on being able to justify their own grip on power in tehran, justify the billions they spend on defense expenditure when people have other important things to worry about. >> thing likes economic problems brought on by international sanctions. analyst says this sabre rattling may be enough for iran's leaders right now, just to give off that distraction. and that they may never follow through on this threat because of all of the logistical challenges. joe? you're in "the situation room." happening now, breaking news, the targets killing of an american citizen by the united states government. this hour, new details of the assassination of top al qaeda leader anwar al awlaki. killed with him, another american who played a critical propaganda role for al qaeda. putting out its english language online magazine, a man who once

said, he was proud to be an american traitor. but there are serious questions about whether the killings are legal. critics are slamming them as summary executions. welcome to our viewers in the was around the world. wolf blitzer is off today. i'm joe johns and you're in "the situation room." he was an american citizen who preached violent hatred toward america, and as leader of al qaeda affiliate he was linked to multiple terror plots. including the ft. hood massacre. months after taking out bin laden, the united states has killed anwar al awlaki, a leader of yemen-based al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. u.s. and yemeni officials sell cnn al awlaki died in a u.s. drone strike in yemen, along with another american man who produced al qaeda english

language online magazine. president obama said it's proof u.s. anti-terror efforts are working. >> earlier this morning, anwar al awlaki, a lead or of al qaeda in the arabian peninsula, was killed in yemen. the death -- the death of al awlaki is a major blow to al qaeda's most active operational affiliate. al awlaki was the leader of external operations for al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. and in that role he took the lead in planning and directing efforts to murder innocent americans. he directed the failed attempt to blow up an airplane on christmas day in 2009, he directed the failed attempt to blow up u.s. cargo planes in 2010, and he repeatedly called on individuals in the united states and around the globe to

kill innocent men, women, and children to advance a murderous agenda. >> cnn's tom foreman working breaking news for us. learning more about how this went down. >> yeah, exactly. joe, the simple truth is, of all 0 the places in the middle east where al qaeda has been a concern, the place where authorities have hunted al awlaki has always been in yemen, which has been a troubled place in many, many different ways, and they've tried very hard to get him there. for example, if you move down here, you can look in the southern part of the country, in 2009, a cruise missile attack down here where they attempted to strike against al awlaki in the southern part of the country that failed. in may of this year, they went in with predator drones and fired missiles the a convoy, they thought they had him but apparently at that time he had changed cars with another jihady and so they did not get him that time either. all of which led to a mythology about him and whether or not he

could ever be caught. but this thing that happened today in khasher is a different story. look at the place where this came down. about 85 miles south of the saudi arabian border. you can see there's really not a whole lot here in this area, very small, very remote area. if you look at it from above, there aren't many houses here. nonetheless, yemeni intelligence officials found out some time back, not terribly long ago they believed al awlaki had a safe house in the area. they identified it, they had intelligence on the ground and also had reason to believe that he was going to try to make a transit from this place to this town down here. this business a 50-mile trip pop so they were watching it very closely, about 10:00 this morning, that's when it all came together. what happened at that time is based on this intelligence he might be trying to come out of here. predator drones were in the area. there were also manned aircraft flying at a further distance, which could also have aided in the attack, if need be.

the drones were being controlled, we're told here at cnn, by cia officials, working in concert with yemeny security officials who knee about all of this going on as we understand it. they believe al awlaki was making the transit from this town to another about 10:00 in the morning. they did not know in the procesprocess parently, khan was with him if they did we haven't heard detail. nonetheless they came in with drones, they struck, and about five miles outside of the city, where he had a safe house, one of the united states great enemies, as far as the administration's concerned, has been taken down. joe? >> tom foreman, thanks for that. two top al qaeda leaders, killed by the united states in less than five months. first, osama bin laden, now anwar al awlaki. what impact will this latest death have on this terror network? that's become so much of our lives. with us is cnn national security analyst and terrorism expert, peter bergen.

put this in context for us, for the person sitting down in front of their television they know anwar al awlaki must be a big deal, otherwise we won be talking about him as much as we are. how high in the organization did he go, and what does this mean for the organization? >> well he didn't lead al qaeda in the arabian peninsula, the organization that tried to bring down flight 253 over detroit christmas day 2009. he's one of the leaders. he's not the bomb make who are built the bomb that the so-called underwear bomber tried to put on the plane. reason we're talking about him, he speaks english, he's an american citizen. he's not a big deal in the arab world. he doesn't have a -- you know, clearly he recruited people in the united states, was able to inspire them to actually go through with acts of violence, in britain and canada also. so you know, it's significant, it's not bin laden. the idea this is the new bin laden is overkill.

>> you still know them by they're deeds, and this is man whose name was associated with a number of different incidents, some failures like the times square bombing, some successes. >> sure. unfortunately you, know, there was an e-mail exchange between hussein and al awlaki in which major nadal hussein said is it okay to kill american soldiers. he had a dozen exchange with al awlaki, essentially trying to get religious sanction for what he was about to do. so you know, that's clearly, you know you, can see why he was by al awlaki became an important person in the last couple of years for the united states government to try to find. >> but you agree, he was a very inspirational figure and able to recruit a lot of people in the organization? >> sure, sure. over time, the u.s. government's view of him has changed. they think that he moved into more of an operational role. so that he wasn't just somebody sort of a cleric on the sidelines. so, you know, it's i big deal.

is it osama bin laden being killed? no, nothing like it. >> talk to me about khan, an individual directly involved in the al qaeda magazine called "inspire." >> yeah. >> what about him? >> well, samir khan like an internet guy, tech savvy, put out seven magazines. one of the magazines they took me on personally they critiqued me for saying that al qaeda was a big loser in the arab spring, took on -- >> they took on -- >> they grew up in the west. >> did you take it as a compliment? >> it was interesting. i mean, i responded on cnn saying you know i don't think you're correct. i think the arab spring is a big problem for you guys and of course have not heard anything since. but the point is that they engaged with west. some of these magazines were kind of stupid. khan wrote an issue suggesting

al qaeda should put blades on a tracker and drive tem into a crowd. bin laden some of the materials in the compound said it sounded like a stupid idea. putting out magazines, they were in english, and that that's why they got a lot of attention. >> does think the put a dent into al qaeda and yemen. >> i think it does. it's part of a -- there's a did in last i'd said 18 months there's a series of american drone strikes, u.s. special forces in yemen, the yemeni military's cooperating to a degree, they're under a lot of pressure. this is just added pressure. >> peter bergen, thanks so much for this. less than a decade ago, al awlaki was preaching here in a mosque in the washington area, and news of his killing is drawing strong reaction from worships are there. cnn's lisa sylvester talked to some of them. lisa, what did they tell you. >> reporter: hi there, joe. i spoke to several members that is mosque after prayers today and they are really putting distance between themselves and

al awlaki, noting that those were his view, not theirs, that the message that they hear at the mosque is one of peace and tolerance, not violence and hatred. at the moving in falls church, virginia a call to friday prayers. here, hundreds of devout muslims come to worship. the mosque has been labeled controversial, embattled, even dubbed the 9/11 moving. two of the 9/11 hijackers worshipped here in 2001. ft. hood alleged shooter also attended services here. and anwar al awlaki, radical american-born cleric, who used the internet as a recruiting tool for al qaeda, was the imam here from 2001 to 2002. worships are we spoke to many of them young professionals said, this dough no the in any way share al awlaki's radical views. not own a member of the moving, he works for the army national guard. >> actions of some of the folks that go to this mosque doesn't represent what the moving is all

about. i live in the area, a grew up born and raised in america, we don't feel the same way. >> reporter: this man shares similar views. >> i would say in a way we're not glad that he's dead, but at the same token, you know, it's helpful, you know? we're trying to clear our name. he definitely does not represent what islam is all about. >> reporter: the mosque's current imam says it was only after al awlaki left in 2002 that he began preaching violence. malik declined to interview requests, and instead issued a statement saying, quote, we reiterate that as an american faith community we do not accept violence nor extremism. but the same statement adds, quote, we have rejected the use of extra-judicial assassination of any human being and especially an american citizen, which includes al awlaki. we reiterate our commitment to due process under law and justice, and are concerned that the alleged drone attack sends the wrong message to law-abiding

people around the world. this man is a human rights lawyer and author. for the members of al awlaki's former moving this is a time to turn the page. >> i think there might be people who might not have fully, you know, agreed with the methodology used but there are going to be very few people in the muslim community who lose any sleep at all over the death of al awlaki and if anything he was a stain on the community both here domestically and globally. >> and al awlaki helped with that online al qaeda magazine, called "inspire" a new addition put up in fact a couple of days ago. the imam at his former mosque said, with his death al awlaki will no longer be able to spread his message of hate over the internet. yo joe in. >> lisa sylvester. the al awlaki killing is stirring up controversy with critics calling it an illegal summary execution by the united states government. we'll check the facts with cnn

senior legal analyst, jeffrey toobin. also, did al awlaki's father ever consider helping the u.s. find his son? cnn's paula newton interviewed him. she'll join us live as well. plus -- the intelligence that led to the high-value target. i'll talk to the chairman of the house intelligence commity, as we follow breaking news. ♪ [ cellphone rings ] cut! [ monica ] i have a small part in a big movie. i thought we'd be on location for 3 days,

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breaking news, the american-born leader of al qaeda's yemen affiliate killed in a u.s. drone strike. the u.s. government had been hunting for anwar al awlaki for some time, and last year his father filed a lawsuit to prevent the fruz trying to assassinate his son, a case that was actually thrown out in district court. cnn's paula newton interviewed al awlaki's father. she joins us live from perugia, italy, covering the amanda knox trial. paula? >> reporter: he didn't consider helping trying to find him, only because he could noefb never get

guarantees he would be treated anything other than a suspected terrorist. he always believed after talking to u.s. officials, what they wanted was to assassinate him and that's what he said he felt was wrong. when i spoke to u.s. officials they admired the doctor, he know all he wanted to do was help out his son but at the same time did not think he's a father, who had a realistic impression of what his son was into online. joe, this was a guy who showed me pictures of a jovial, easy going, well educated american boy. that's the way his father described him to me. showed picture of him at disney world and described number a way which would juxtapose a terrorist. he didn't believe a word of it. more than that, he believed that it was illegal that they tried to assassinate him. they said at the very least they should capture him and put him on trial. he was a very tormented plan throughout, in my rapport with

him -- i tried to get a hold of him, cannot, i will continue trying. >> he was oblivious to the notion his son had become a radical. did he at least see signs of his son becoming a radical as he grew up? >> reporter: you know, when you think about yemen, many people, as you know, were not happy with the way the war on terror was being prosecuted. his son was one of those people i'm think, as a father, it was very difficult for him to come to terms. the fact that he was advocating violence, i think when we started talking about the ft. hood shooter, which i spoke to him about specifically he did not really look at the evidence and say it pointed to inciting violence. he said, yes, he did not agree with the radical views of his son but he thought what he was getting into was a complete departure and was being embellishedly u.s. officials. he was convinced his son was becoming a much more dangerous person. crucial here, joe, he would never help the u.s. authorities find him. more than that, he would tell me

that he has friends, tribes people in yemen that would help protect his son. >> paul newton, thanks for that reporting. it's not just al awlaki's father who says his son's killing is illegal. there's a huge controversy surrounding the targeted asass nation of u.s. sit agains by the american government in the name of fighting terrorism. let's bring in cnn's senior legal analyst, jeffrey toobin. what the aclu said today. if the constitution means anything, it surely means that the president does not have unreviewable authority to summarily execute any american whom he concludes is an enemy of the state. how strong is that argument, in your view? the obama administration says right after 9/11 the congress authorized the use of military force against al qaeda. this assassination, this attack on this gentleman is part of the

war and they can chase al qaeda wherever they are. they killed bin laden in pakistan, they killed this guy in yemen, and they're going to catch them wherever they can. the obama administration does not worry -- is not worried -- that they lack legal justification. >> that question, though, continues. no due process, and american citizen in a foreign country. when, for example, back in germany, world war ii, there were germans who actually came to the shores of the united states and were arrested and given a trial. it's a very different situation. >> it is a different situation. it's a different kind of war. and it is true that we are dealing in somewhat uncharted legal terror here. remember, this -- those germans came to our shores. they literally -- the kiran group, as they were known, came to the shores off long island and arrested there. we did not give people trials

who we were fighting in germany during world war ii. we killed those people if we could. this is the equivalent according to the obama administration, that this is a war, he's a soldier, we're going to kill him if we can. >> another interesting point you heard paula newton talking about it just a minute ago, his father, al awlaki's father, actually went to court to try to get the court to say the united states should not assassinate his son but he wasn't successful with the lawsuit. tell us why he didn't get anywhere. >> he wasn't for the simple legal issue of what's called standing. the court said, look, we are not going to deal with the legality of this order to kill your son. you, as the father, don't have standing. you don't have the legal right, you don't have, as the lawyers say, in a legal injury at risk here. you didn't suffer anything because of this order. that's your son. you don't get to assert his rights in an american courtroom so the judge in washington threw

the case out. >> you'd have to wonder, who would have the power to assert on behalf of a son in an example like this who would have the power, the standing, to do that? >> joe, that's one of the interesting issues about this legal debate. we can have a theoretical discussion, but could anyone go to court and find this practice by the obama administration illegal? frankly, i have my doubts. so i mean, i think the obama administration, like all administrations, cares about following the law. but could this actually ever be tested in a courtroom? could a wrongful death suit be filed on behalf of this guy who died in yemen? frankly, i doubt it. so i don't think we're ever going to have a definitive answer to the question of whether this is legal. >> jeffrey toobin, thanks so much for that. >> okay joe. >> hear what the secretary of defense tells cnn about the killing of al awlaki. the exclusive, next. [ woman ] my grocery bill isn't wasteful spending.

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digging deeper into the breaking news this hour, cnn's senior international correspondent, nic robertson, shows us his appeal and his threat. >> reporter: silenced. anwar al awlaki, al qaeda's articulate english language mouthpiece. although he never made the u.s. most wanted terrorist list, he was the first u.s. citizen ever placed on the cia hit list. his killing, not the first attempt on his life. in may he narrowly escaped a missile fired from an unmanned u.s. drone. followers revered him for his

theology. he taught muslims to attack americans. >> he remains me of, for example, bin laden and al zawahiri in terms of soft-spoken and at knowledge that they have, the foundation as it they have. >> reporter: an american citizen, born to privilege, the son of a yemeni government minister, educated at several u.s. universities before becoming an imam in california, then virginia. while a preacher, the commission investigated the 9/11 takes say his met three of the 9/11 hijackers. he was also accused of inspiring ft. hood shooter, major nadal hassan and times square bomber, shahzad, and recruiting underpants bomber who tried to bring down a detroit-bound airliner christmas 2009. >> to have the worst -- >> reporter: al awlaki's appeal, his charisma, na maria nip u

lative use of english will be missed by al qaeda's franchise. al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. his messages were popular, selling thousands upon thousands of dvds offering recruitment and money raising opportunities for the radical and his allies. his killing plays into yemeni politics in a big way. president saleh had been targeted three months ago in an assassination attempt. he had just come back from saudi arabia, where he had been recovering from his wounds. his return to a yemen on the verge of civil war, al qaeda has taken control of three provinces. saleh wants u.s. backing to shore up his failing 30-year leadership, helping the u.s. bring down al qaeda is how his supporters hope he'll get it. >> now, let's bring in cnn senior international correspondent, nic robertson. nic, in terms of operations,

what does this mean for al qaeda in the arabian peninsula? >> well, it certainly means a psychological blow. al awlaki was hugely influential in recruitment, if you will, his sort of dvd sales, thousands upon thousands, his online sort of peaspeeches also very popula will mean it will be harder for al qaeda in the arabian peninsula to get the same levels of money flowing to them, funds they need to continue with their operations. so it will hurt them in that way, though he is has played a role in recruitment, recruited the underpants bomb, tried to bring down that airliner over detroit christmas 2009, he is not somebody that sort of been at the forefront of the bomb building and some of the other exploits of al qaeda in the arabian peninsula in yemen. so, it will have an impact, but it's unlikely to dent their

operations in the long-term journey. >> you say he recruited the underwear bomber but the question is now about the man who created that bomb, the bombmaker if you will. how dangerous is he, and how important to u.s. and other authorities? >> the bombmaker who made the underpants bomb in 2009, who made using the similar powerful explosives in 2010, the printer bombs, is still on the loose, and al qaeda now has operational control, effectively over three provinces in the country, and this gives a series, the bombmaker, greater ability to space to make his bombs. he makes sophisticated weapons. so he poses perhaps the more real operational bomb making challenge to the united states. he is the man behind the two last principal attacks against the u.s. >> and anwar al awlaki worked openly on the internet,

persuading muslims to embrace his violent brand of islam. but in yemen, he had all been vanished into the desert. nearly impossible to find for the men tasked with killing him. ahead, more on how he was found after all these years.to t ch it? go ahead and touch it. nicely. nice froggy. [ female announcer ] there was a time when poker night... was what you looked forward to all week. - oh, wow! cool! cool! - whoa! so who'd have ever thought boys night out... wouldn't hold a candle to boys night in? having a baby changes everything.

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more on this hour's breaking news, the death of al qaeda lead, anwar al awlaki, killed in a u.s. drone strike in yemen, it's raising lots of questions, including how the united states can be sure it got its target. joining me now is congressman mike rogers of michigan, the charm of the house intelligence committee. congressman, first question is, how did you get the news on this? and how do we know this man is dead? >> well there are a lot of ways to do it. i got it in the early morning hour this morning. but there are, a, intelligence on the fact that it was him in

this particular convoy was exceptionally good, very high degree of confidence, and then there is intelligence ways to collect different streams of intelligence following the attack that also confirms the fact that it was anwar al awlaki. >> so what are we talking about here? pictures? does someone have possession of the body? is there dna evidence? how do we know for sure? >> well, we can't talk about all of the ways that we know burke it is a high degree of confidence. so, clearly we have been tracking this individual and trying to find him. there was a shot against anwar al awlaki earlier this year that didn't go well. and so, you know, they were fast on this guy so all streams of intelligent that you might imagine would be collected, source information, technology, other ways to try to pinpoint where he is and who he is and all of those things were culminated into the decision to

actually go ahead and make sure that an air strike was committed on this particular event. and so with all of those factors, and then what happens afterward is, you know, again, the sources are talked to, other things to confirm the fact that it was him. i have a very high degree of confidence it was him. also which was a great get today was his partner in crime, if you will, samir khan, who is equally as dangerous and part of the communications network trying to recruit u.s. citizens to do jihad here in the zpluz united . >> what else can you tell us about the attack? our sources say it was a u.s. missile from a u.s. drone. what was the role, if you will, of the yemeni government in eliminating this individual? i will say we have a good partnership with yemeni

government, the counterterrorism forces have been very good partners with the united states. their capabilities have been getting better and better about we've tried to help along the way where we could possibly do that. and you know they were really partners in this particular effort. you know, again, this was considered an air strike, so that's where we should leave that. but it was an operation that clearly was effective and it really combined everything. it combined efforts with liaison services, yem minutese, maybe their information, all of that was put together to find him in this particular place. it sents a pretty clear signal to the bad guy, listen, it's just a matter of time, we're going to find you, you may want to change your ways now. >> how was the u.s. able to figure out his location? for example, did the united states know he was in a particular area for a long amount of time? and how are they able to fix out that he was in this particular car that they ended up

targeting? >> joe, i can't tell you everything. we still want to get more bad guys. i can tell you this, it is a combination of a whole host of things. it's running good human source information, someone talks to an individual willing to cooperate because they see travesties of what al qaeda is doing in a country like yemen, let alone to the was our western allies. those people are providing information. we are technical means, sat light things and other ways that we continue to isolate an individual and try to find where that individual is, pattern of life is. wherever that pattern of life is, we, you know, can with our help of our yemenese friends and others help focus on that person and that news gets tighter and tighter until it accumulates to what you saw today. >> one of the controversies that arises in a situation like this is about the nature of the united states government targeting such an individual in this case an american citizen.

you, of course, by background you, have a criminal justice degree, and you're also a former fbi agent. is it wrong or right to target an american citizen in this sway who is not been given the due process and protections of the u.s. constitution? >> well, i think i'm going to argue the member is of your question. here is an individual who renounced his citizenship, declared war on the united states, and openly joined an organization that had declared war on the united states, has taken affirmative action to that end, meaning the christmas day bomber was his plot, the cartridge bombs he was trying to get on planes to blow up everyboover the united states was his plot, the fact he recruited and had something to do with major hasan, the chushooting in texas all those things al awlaki. he was vocal, he talked frequently of it. this is not the same as saying

some u.s. citizen that stumbles into the terrorist network. this is very, very different and very, very isolated. once he took the case to renounce his citizenship, declare war on the united states he became an enemy combatant and treated accordingly. >> the killing of al awlaki can't cop at a better time for yemen's president. could the assassination persuade president obama to back off of calls for him to step down? ♪ [ male announcer ] we're not employers or employees. not white collar or blue collar or no collars. we are business in america. and every day we awake to the same challenges. but at prudential we're helping companies everywhere find new solutions to manage risk, capital and employee benefits, so american business can get on with business. ♪

one week ago, yemen's president returned from saudi arabia to a country seething with anger. today his government is praised for helping to find al qaeda cleric anwar al awlaki. coincidence? no one can say for sure. cnn foreign affairs correspondent jill dougherty looks at whether the assassination will buy yemen's president some time. >> reporter: flush with the news that terrorist anwar al awlaki has been killed in yemen, president barack obama praises yemen for its help. >> the success is a tribute to our intelligence community and to the efforts of yemen and its security forces who have worked closely with the united states

over the course of several years. >> reporter: but less than ten days ago, mr. obama was urging yemen's president to step aside. >> we must work with yemen's neighbors and our partners around the world to seek a path that allows for a peaceful transition of power from president saleh. >> reporter: saleh in office for 33 years, puts the obama administration on the horns of the dilemma. >> he can say, hey, you know, my government was sort of, my military's been part of these successful attacks on, you know, the united states should keep me in place. >> reporter: since february, saleh has been trying to put down an arab spring-type uprising. just this week, protesters were gunned down by yemeni security troops, forcing the state department in an uncomfortable bit of diplomatic straddle go our counterterrorism cooperation is undertaken with the counterterrorism forces in yemen and is for that specific purpose

that doesn't change the fact that whether it's in yemen or anywhere else in the world we oppose the use of force against peaceful demonstrators. >> reporter: meanwhile, the violence and political chaos in yemen continue. saleh, severely burned in an attack on his presidential compound in june, forcing him to flee to saudi arabia for medical treatment, is back, increasing domestic tensions. and one expert says, ironically, that might have helped to destroy al awlaki. >> for a long time, the assumption has been the yemeni government would not take action against al awlaki or others for domestic yemeni political consideration but was clearly that's changed now. and the yemeni government, you know, in some parts must feel vulnerable with everything go on to extend themselves in this way. >> reporter: al awlaki's death is not changing president obama's view of the yemeni

president. just hours after the terrorist was killed, the white house called on saleh to stop all violence against his people and to begin the transfer of power immediately. joe? >> this just in to cnn. the new defense secretary is reacting to the killing of anwar al awlaki. until the summer leon panetta was director of the cia, which was hunting for al awlaki. here's what he told cnn's erin >> and i'm curious, there's been discussion of the aclu today saying he's an american citizen. perhaps the fact that it was a cia drone which killed him was possibly illegal because he didn't have a trial and he's an american citizen. are you confident that your clear legally here? >> this individual was clearly a terrorist, and, yes, he was a

citizen, but if you're a terrorist, you're a terrorist. and that means that we have the ability to go after those who would threaten to attack the united states and kill americans. there's no question that the authority and the ability to go after a terrorist is there. >> be sure to check out erin's new show, "erin burnett out front" month night at 7:00 eastern, right here on cnn. a check of the day's other top stories is next. then, cyberterror attacks on u.s. power and water supplies. we'll show you what the people in this lab are doing to prevent it. when anybody in america calls quicken loans for a free home loan review, we'll offer them a free android smartphone. but how are you gonna get these phones to our clients coast to coast? it's gonna take a little magic. i'm on it. straight from motown to you, america! yes! helping people coast to coast. give me that spartan touch. [ male announcer ] call today for a free home loan review.

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here's a look at this hour's hotshots. a man anchors fishing boats for an upcoming typhoon. in england a woman runs through the early morning mist. much of britain is experiencing unseasonably hot weather. in australia, a child

watches chimpanzees share a coconut in their new habitat. lisa silvester is monitoring some of the other top stories in the situation. cnn put our worst chances of a double dip recession at 50/50. a group of economists is saying this is wishful thinking? >> popular predictions of where the u.s. is headed says we are just beginning a recession or it is staring us smack in the face. the downturn could last less than a year. and without major job loss unless the debt crisis sends the economy reeling. the very same bacteria responsible for killing 15 people who ate tainted cantaloupe now prompting a lettuce recall. chopped or shredded romain has

been recalled after a sample test turned up listeria. no illnesses have been reported. iowas new hampshire, south carolina and nevada are vowing to move their primary dates to stay ahead of florid in the nomination process. they don't have to decide until tomorrow. florida legislators ignored gop wishes to move the primary. the rnc hasn't said what if any stiffer penalty will be handed to florida for violating those rules. there may be a light at the end of the tunnel in the solyndra debacle. when the california company went bankrupt, the government was left holding a hefty bag. the government could recoup millions if another company buys the state of the art facility or the company itself. and the pentagon is making more changes after the military's turn about on the don't ask don't tell policy.

a new memo says military chaplains are able to officiate any same sex wedding they want whether on or off a military base, as long as state and local laws allow. >> what a change that is? >> i know they had been going back and forth. there's some guidance they were going to, now they're not. >> change comes slowly. thanks, lisa. unprecedented access to the government lab dedicated to preventing a cyber pearl harbor. details of the frightening scenarios they're playing out. e name your own price division. i find empty hotel rooms and help people save - >> - up to 60% off. i am familiar. your name? > naomi pryce. >> what other "negotiating" skills do you have? > i'm a fifth-degree black belt. >> as am i. > i'm fluent in 37 languages. >> (indistinct clicking) > and i'm a master of disguise >> as am i. > as am i. >> as am i. > as am i. >> well played naomi pryce.

i tell you what i can spend. i do my best to make it work. i'm back on the road safely. and i saved you money on brakes. that's personal pricing. what would happen if cyber terrorists launched an online attack against a chemical plant or water company. cnn's dan simon was given unprecedented access to these conversations. >> you think about the state of idaho, you're likely to think about one thing, potatoes. it is the driving force of the state's economy. a few miles away from here in the town of idaho falls, government workers are trying to protect the country from terrorism. not from bullets or bombs, but computers.

idaho is ground zero in the fight against cyber terrorism. >> this is an example of one vendor's systems that we have. >> leading that fight is marty edwards. his job is to prevent cyber criminals from breaking into a system that control the power grid or water supply. >> there's a lot of concern about people being able to manipulate these systems for ill intent. >> to show what can happen and what's being done about it. the department of homeland security invited cnn in for a rare look at the laboratory. this section was made to look like a water treatment or chemical plant. another was built to represent a power substation. both where a wide array of experiments can be run. the key is to see how the system reacts and what software

upgrades can be done to prevent it from happening in the first place. >> we don't want to frighten people, but these threats are real. >> absolutely are real. but i think the average american doesn't understand that the vast majority of the infrastructure around them is controlled by computer devices. as we all know, we can get viruss on our systems at home, these systems are susceptible to similar types of events. >> viruss have the potential to leave entire cities or regions with contaminated water and without power. in 2007 the lab conducted a classified experiment known as aurora. the test showed how hackers could not only shut off a generator, but actually destroy it. any major knockout could be dubbed a cyber pearl harbor. worse yet, even if there were an attack, the experts might not even know it. >> can there be a cyber pearl harbor? absolutely? would we know it's a cyber pearl

harbor? i don't think so. reporter: they worry about cyber criminals staying one step ahead, by being able to inflict damage without leaving a trace. >> can you hide a plant shutting down and the lights going off? no. can you not know it was cyber that caused it? the answer is yes. >> just like the potatoes, cyber terrorism comes in many different varieties. the laboratory is trying to identify all of them, but most important, to try to prevent attacks from happening. joe? >> remember, begning monday the situation room moves up an hour. be sure to join us from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. eastern on weekdays. john king usa will follow at 6:00 eastern. and erin burnett outfront follows at 7:00 eastern. for international viewers this program will remain on at the same time. i'm joe johns in the situation room. world report is next. and in